


The Grass Is Always Greener on the Other Side

by TheMelonDolphin



Category: Life Is Strange (Video Game)
Genre: Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Angst with a Happy Ending, F/F, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Minor Original Character(s), Past Rape/Non-con, Sequel
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-05
Updated: 2018-08-02
Packaged: 2019-05-02 09:42:15
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,868
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14541954
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheMelonDolphin/pseuds/TheMelonDolphin
Summary: Six months after meeting each other at the Price Pines Christmas Tree Lot, Max and Chloe are happy together while in a relationship. Helping Chloe cope with an alcoholic parent, Max suddenly finds her own demons resurfacing as someone from her past returns.





	1. An Unexpected Turn

**Author's Note:**

> Hey how's it goin' guys, it's been a while! I wanted to make a little short sequel to 'Blue Christmas' just for fun. It's nothing really serious or major I'm working on, more so word vomit in a way, so don't expect anything good out of this. I will tell you that I am working on something that will be released once I am finished writing it, it's almost like my first novel. No, it will not be another version of 'Hold Your Own' as much as I would want it to be, I just cannot mentally write for it right now. Now, for location in this story, forgive me, I am making it clear that this is set in Seattle, so ignore all the Arcadia Bay stuff from the first book. I want to make this very clear so I won't punch myself later. Enjoy!

“Chloe, wait up!”

“Not happenin’, slowpoke! I’ve got longer legs than you!”

Max was stumbling behind as Chloe bolted through the woods on the hiking path, legs pumping hard. The blue-haired girl was obviously more physically fit than her due to years of cutting down trees and maneuvering through thick, high inches of snow. But the photographer so desperately tried to keep up with her girlfriend, her stick-like legs practically throbbing, begging to take a rest. She eventually caught up due to Chloe stopping at a cliff and gazing at the lake in front of them below. “Remind me to… never… challenge you… to a race,” Max wheezed, catching her breath through her words.

“Dude, look at this beautiful lake!” Chloe exclaimed, clearly unphased by the mile run they just did. “We have to swim!”

“I don’t think we’re allowed,” Max said hesitantly.

“Uh, no one’s watching. Perfect time,” the lumberjack insisted.

“We don’t even have bathing suits,” the brunette pointed out.

“Who said anything about bathing suits?” Chloe smiled, taking off her backpack and tank-top and bolting toward the mini cliff, diving into the water.

“Chloe!” Max cried out, looking at the edge of the cliff. Soon the blue-haired girl burst out of the water. Her ponytail gone, Chloe's wet hair stuck to her face, shimmering as the sun glared against it. She had grown it out since the beginning of spring, her natural strawberry-blonde roots starting to peak out of her electric blue. Droplets ran down her toned stomach, which didn't get unnoticed by Max. Even after six months into their relationship, the brunette was still mesmerized by the punk's beauty. She pulled out her camera and aimed to take a photo of her girlfriend. Getting the angle she wanted, lighting just perfect on the water, she snapped her Polaroid. Soon it spit out the picture, the freckled girl taking it to examine. She smiled contently and put it in her bag. "Hey, hippie! Are you just gonna stand there and stare like a creeper or are you gonna join me?" Chloe called out from below.

"You just want an excuse to see me almost naked," Max smirked, crossing her arms and putting her weight on one foot.

"Got me," the blue-haired girl admitted with a grin. "Now strip! I'm getting bored."

Max began taking her clothes off, which were covered in sweat from earlier, and also took her ponytail out. She set them off to the side, just in her underwear at this point, and stepped carefully to the cliff. She looked below, seeing her reflection in the water, and Chloe who was bobbing up and down like a buoy. "C'mon, chicken! It's not even that cold!" Chloe urged. Taking a running start, Max dashed off the cliff and into the air. "Cowabunga!" she shouted, plunging into the lake. It was like a wakeup call, cold but not to the point of freezing, and felt good after attempting to run a path through the woods. Rising to the surface, the brunette took a gulp of air and brushed the wet hair out of her eyes. "Yeah, Max! That was awesome!" Chloe whooped, fist-pumping the air, making the freckled girl laugh.

"Definitely nice after having to literally drag myself on that path that you were absolutely destroying," the freckled girl sighed.

"Not my fault you're a shortie. Plus this is my workout session almost every other day. You think all my injuries are from trees? I've almost broken my entire body on this trail," the punk said as almost as if it was an accomplishment.

"Hearing about you cutting off your finger from an axe mishap is frightening to me, let alone you crushing your own body on this trail." Max shivered at the thought of Chloe having fatal injuries. It was bad enough she had to work a dangerous job cutting down trees. But it's what Chloe loved and Max didn't want to take that away from her.

"I guess you could say it was an  _axe-_ ident!" Chloe said with a shit-eating grin.

 The brunette rolled her eyes good-naturedly at the punk's attempt to make a joke. "You're so stupid, you know that?" she tried to say without smiling, but failing miserably.

"You love me though," the blue-haired girl jeered.

"Yeah, I do. But I also love annoying you!" Max unexpectedly splashed water into her girlfriend's face. Chloe shrieked as the cool liquid hit her. She shook her head rapidly to get the water off and glared playfully at Max. "Oh, you are so dead, nerd!"

A big wave of water made by Chloe came raining on Max, soaking her hair even more. Laughing and giggling, the two girls splashed each other like two kids at a swimming pool. Eventually it came to an end as they got out of the lake and attempted to dry off. Chloe shook her body like a dog while Max squealed as water hit her. They got back up to their stuff, putting their clothes back on and adjusting to them. The two girls sat down on a log, digging into their bags and pulling out snacks they had brought along on their hike. Two sandwiches, four bottles of water, two Gatorades, and carrot sticks. Chloe started chugging down a bottle of water while Max munched on a carrot. They stayed silent for a moment, enjoying the peace and quiet of nature. The lumberjack started naming trees in her head, what type, leaf size, everything. Like she did when Max first came to the lot to pick out a tree. Poor Bertha lived a good life and finally got to be decorated to her full potential. They had a full-fledged funeral for her and everything, to which Chloe had actually cried a little at. Now it was mid June and everything was almost the same. They hung out with the same group of people; Warren, Kate, Justin, and Brooke, and they had been in a nice relationship since then. Chloe took her sandwich and chomped into it. A homemade BLT was the best type of sandwich to her, and no one could prove to her otherwise.

 "So, how's Joyce lately?" Max asked, breaking the silence.

Chloe put down her sandwich, pausing on chewing the food in her mouth. It was almost as if she had to think about the answer. She swallowed, choking a little and clearing her throat. "I guess fine? I... I don't know anymore. I try to hide all the alcohol in the house but she ends up finding it anyway. God, she's like a bloodhound when it comes to sniffing it out. My dad and I just don't know what to do with her. Their relationship has been a little rocky recently, and I usually just go up to my room to have some peace and quiet. I'm honestly not gonna be surprised if they get a divorce soon. I'm ready for it to be over."

"Hey," the brunette took her girlfriend's bigger calloused hand in her own, "it's gonna be okay."

"Max, when you were dating Nathan, did you ever feel like he meant to hurt you? Like you know they're a good person at heart but in the back of your mind you can't shake the fact they hurt you on purpose?" the punk admitted.

The freckled girl had to think for a moment. She surely thought about it before, but couldn't remember anything now considering it was two years ago. It still haunted her, but it was almost as if the memory was a blur at this point. "I mean, I know the pregnancy wasn't intentional, but other than that I can't really say. I guess when someone affects you so deeply you want to know what's going through their minds to see what makes them think this is the right thing. For Nathan, I mean... pfft, Hell, I can't think of anything. I didn't know what was going through his mind then and I don't know now. Guess it was part of his mental illness." Max shrugged.

"It's just... I know she's drunk and can't think straight but she remembers me. She remembers who I am and what I mean to her, which I guess is what makes her say horrible things to me. Y'know it's one thing to hear some drunk fuck-face on the street tell you you're not worth anything and a disgrace, but your mom... that's a whole level of hurt. I mean drunk actions are just sober thoughts, right?" Chloe looked at her girlfriend.

The brunette lifted her hand and kissed it, getting a glimpse of her faded blue-gray eye. "Chloe, she obviously loves you to death, you've seen her sober before. Her drunkenness has clearly made an impact on your world and there's no changing that. But the alcohol does not define who your mother is or what she should mean to you. I mean, think about the times when she didn't drink."

The punk ran a hand through her fading blue hair as she stared off into the distance, gazing at the many trees surrounding them. "I remember this time we went to Disneyland when I was seven and went on my first rollercoaster. It was with my mom back when she only drank in moderation. I remember being so scared to ride Space Mountain that I almost threw up when they put me in a car. My mom calmed me down and told me everything was going to be alright, that there was nothing to be afraid of. And after the ride we looked at the pictures only to find me grinning wildly and my mom having a look of horror on her face. It was so funny we had to buy it," Chloe's lips curved upwards a little, reminiscing about the memory.

"See? You have some good memories with her," Max smiled hopefully. "What you know of her isn't completely gone."

"Yeah. Yeah I guess."

The freckled girl leaned in, gently pressing her lips to the blue-haired girl's in a loving kiss. They both melted into it really quickly, almost slipping tongues into each other's mouths. Eventually breaking away, Max smiled at her girlfriend. "No matter what happens I'll always stay by your side, Chloe. I promise I'll always be there for you."

"As will I, Max," Chloe vowed.

The two kissed again, this time more passionately as Max cupped the lumberjack's cheeks with her hands. Suddenly the brunette felt her phone buzzing in her pocket. She took it out, nodding to Chloe who just smiled. Max got up off the log and walked away to answer her cell phone. "Hello?" she greeted.

"Max! Oh thank goodness you picked up!" the voice responded.

"Kate? Hey, what's up?" Max was a little surprised to hear from her friend.

"Max, whatever you do, do not, I repeat, do  _not_ come to the coffee shop," Kate warned through the phone. "Something's come up."

"Kate, is everything alright? What's going on?" the photographer asked worriedly.

"It's Nathan," the blonde whispered. "He's back..."


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: big rant at the end and this chapter doesn't mean anything.

Max got over her fears of Nathan and Chloe and Joyce worked out her alcohol problem and all lived happily ever after the end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey how's it goin' guys I needed to post this chapter quickly to say that I have been neglecting my writing habit. Fuck... I put out this chapter kind of rushed because I'm sure you know it's very much a turnoff when people put notes in here like this in replacing of the chapter(Fanfiction I'm talking to you). But I just needed to get this out there because I might have to break some promises. As you guys probably know as fellow writers and authors of fanfiction, you criticize your own work A LOT, and with me being a perfectionist in everything that I do is also an "Oh fuck" moment. That and being extremely lazy. THIS IS WHY I CAN NEVER BE A PROFESSIONAL AUTHOR! I told you guys I would have some stuff planned in October which was three awesome Life is Strange stories, but then it just cut down to two cause I wasn't really feeling the idea, then I'm starting to cut it down to one because I'm not really into Life is Strange anymore, don't really have any inspiration or backbone, and have moved onto other things and I don't want to half-ass making content for people. Now I'm just like "fuck it, if it takes me another damn year to write this fucking story and be happy with it I will", but with the new season of Life is Strange coming out people probably aren't gonna wanna see stories written about Max and Chloe anymore and that's where I'm like "shit". And I don't want to disappoint you guys. Granted, we've all been guilty of this, that we have this amazing story and wanna hear more from the author then as times go on we forget that they even exist and have a story. I'd rather have that than people be angry at me not keeping a promise because of my own flaws. Then people could be like "oh it's that melon dolphin person, who the fuck were they again?" and not be like "this fucker promised a damn story in October and didn't deliver, so unprofessional". And I get that fanfiction is supposed to be pointless and meaningless, but it does mean something to me, I mean it's the only way I'm getting my work out there, and I don't wanna be that type of person who just says they're gonna do something and doesn't do it. As for the Life is Strange thing, I hope people are still into Max and Chloe when I feel like my story is good and will click on it, even after season two is done. I love them and I love the game, just not with the amount of fire I used to have. And I wanna make good content for you guys and not be that one author who doesn't know what the fuck they're doing, and I also wanna do it for myself and be able to look back on it in ten years and say "wow, I am still proud of this". Yeah, my story might not make it to the exact due date but if I'm happy with it then that's all that matters, and I hope you guys like them too, and I'm done rambling for the longest time. So I hope that as fellow writers you can understand, I know I'm not that relevant or famous on here but I still want to say these things and not get bit in the ass for it. Alright I'm actually done. Fuck.
> 
> That is it for me, may the next day bring you great wishes, and I will see you when I post something new.
> 
> -The Melon Dolphin


End file.
